by
Michael
Ciaglo/Getty
Images)
Law
professor
Felicia
Branch
was
suspended
by
the
University
of
Arkansas
Little
Rock
William
H.
Bowen
School
of
Law
over
comments
she
made
on
Facebook
concerning
the
death
of
far-right
activist
Charlie
Kirk.
Her
comments,
which
called
particular
attention
to
the
methods
of
Kirk
and
his
own
take
on
gun
violence,
sparked
a
firestorm
in
the
state.
Governor
Sarah
Huckabee
Sanders
called
the
now-deleted
post
(available
below)
“vile.”
Lieutenant
Governor
Leslie
Rutledge
said,
“While
faculty
members
have
the
right
to
express
opinions,
openly
celebrating
the
assassination
of
a
fellow
American
crosses
a
line.”
Arkansas
Attorney
General
Tim
Griffin
called
for
Branch,
who
leads
a
clinic
at
the
law
school
to
assist
low-income
individuals,
to
be
fired,
“The
First
Amendment
protects
your
right
to
say
what
you
want.
It
does
not,
however,
guarantee
you
the
job
you
want,
regardless
of
what
you
say.
The
law
school
should
terminate
her
immediately.”
University
of
Arkansas
Little
Rock
Chancellor
Christina
Drale
wrote
of
Branch’s
comments,
“As
educators
we
should
hold
ourselves
to
a
higher
standard
of
conduct
that
values
civil
discourse,
speaks
clearly
about
the
dangers
of
political
violence,
and
that
prioritizes
a
rigorous,
fair-minded
learning
environment.
The
postings
I
read
this
morning
do
not
reflect
this
standard.”
Branch
has
been
suspended
with
pay
while
the
university
conducts
its
investigation.
While
Reuters
reports
Branch
is
the
first
in
legal
academia
to
get
swept
up
in
the
witch
hunt,
educators
have
been
targeted
in
other
disciplines.
According
to
the
PayDay
Report,
hundreds
of
teachers,
staff,
and
professors
have
been
suspended
—
particularly
in
red
states
where
state
agencies
are
actively
investigating
the
education
community
en
masse.
And
in
Florida,
they’re
taking
it
a
step
further
than
just
social
media
posts.
Education
commissioner
Anastasios
Kamoutsas
is
asking
folks
to
rat
out
private
conversations
that
express
disfavored
viewpoints.
“What
we’re
seeing
right
now
is
certainly
what
feels
to
me
to
be
McCarthy-like,” Florida
Education
Association
President
Andrew
Spar
said. “Where
people
are
being
encouraged
by
the
commissioner
and
by
others
to
essentially
hunt
for,
teachers
or
staff
or
professors
who
are
saying
something
that
someone
has
a
problem
with,
however
small
it
may
be,
and
to
essentially
expose
that,
to
dox
teachers,
to
threaten
teachers
and
staff
and
professors.”
Biglaw
firm
Perkins
Coie
also
fired
an
attorney
for
comments
about
the
death
of
Kirk
they
found
objectionable.
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email
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with
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questions,
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comments
and
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@Kathryn1 or
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@[email protected].